


Think About Us

by seathehorizon



Category: K-pop, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Parents, Endgame Jeon Jungkook/Park Jimin, Exes, Getting Back Together, M/M, Parents Jeon Jungkook & Park Jimin, Past Jeon Jungkook/Park Jimin, She was adopted while they were together, They go to a dog cafe, They have shared custody of their daughter, jimin and Jungkook are exes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:22:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25389733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seathehorizon/pseuds/seathehorizon
Summary: Jeongguk had replied with a thumbs up followed by a picture of Jeongguk and Chunhwa, both with crowns on their heads, Jeongguk wearing some ridiculous ensemble of gold and random patterns he nevertheless pulled off well and Chunhwa wearing a purple dress with puffy sleeves and lace.After much deliberation, he had made it his home screen. Then he had deleted it. Then he'd put it back. Then he had zoomed in on Chunhwa, but her smiling face didn't look right without Jeongguk’s toothy grin somehow. In the end he had used the full picture, telling himself it would be rude not to and suppressing the part of him that told him this was his family.
Relationships: Jeon Jungkook/Park Jimin
Comments: 20
Kudos: 260
Collections: Starlight Jikook Fest 2020





	Think About Us

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [starlightjikookfest2020](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/starlightjikookfest2020) collection. 



> **Prompt:**
> 
> jimin and jungkook are exes that are co-parenting.

Jimin opened the door, giving Jeongguk his best unimpressed face and crossing his arms. “You’re late.”

The smile slid off Jeongguk’s face, replaced by something akin to bewilderment - and some annoyance. “By about ten minutes. It would’ve been a lot more if I hadn’t known an alternative route, because of that accident I rang you about, remember?”

Jimin did remember. To be honest, when he had received the phone call that Jeongguk was stuck in traffic due to a car crash en route, he had assumed it would take him forever to get here and he had half expected he wouldn’t make it all, which would have undoubtedly left an excited Chunhwa heartbroken.

Sighing at his own unreasonable irritation, Jimin stepped aside so Jeongguk count enter. “Right, sorry. It’s been a stressful day and Chunhwa was feeling down earlier, so…” So he took it out on Jeongguk, the nearest adult at the moment. This was part of why they hadn’t worked out: Jimin was by no means a bad person - or so he had been told, even by Jeongguk himself - but when he was frustrated, he could lash out at the wrong person. Jeongguk, on the other hand, tended to bottle up all those feelings until all the tension would eventually lead to an argument.

Things had never been terrible between them, Jimin didn’t think, and it wasn’t as though they had fought continuously or their relationship had been toxic, per se. However, in the end things hadn’t been great either and for the sake of Chunhwa, they had decided to split up, not wanting to risk her getting caught up in her dads’ problems. Besides, at some point they had fallen out of love and were friends raising a child rather than partners, so it had made more sense to stick to friends rather than become bitter and have everything go south entirely.

There was a concerned frown on Jeongguk’s face as he toed off his shoes, a great contrast to how Jimin tended to kick his off and sort them out later (he was getting better at that, though, so as not to give Chunhwa the wrong example). “Is she alright?”

“She is now, I think.” She had certainly seemed fine when they had been watching Pokémon together. “But some boy in her class made fun of her last week, calling her names and such, and it upset her.” Understandably so; Jimin had been upset on her behalf and Jeongguk’s expression showed he was too. She was such a sweet girl and Jimin hated that someone would dare bully her.

“I requested a conversation with the parents, but they declined,” Jimin shared as he led the way into the living room. “They’re quite homophobic and seem to think it’s contagious.” The way they had looked at him was disgusting, but Jimin had held his head high, never wanting Chunhwa to think he was ashamed of being who he was, because shame could make her believe something was indeed wrong with him.

It had been disappointing, though. Even if they disagreed with his sexuality (a ridiculous thing to disagree with, as it was natural and, to him, it was similar to disagreeing with the existence of trees or mountains), they should at least treat his - their - little girl with respect.

Jeongguk stuck his tongue in his cheek and shook his head. “I’m sorry you had to put up with that alone.” He sounded genuinely regretful, but before Jimin could assure him it was fine - they had joint custody and dropped her off and picked her up on different days, with one week being Jimin’s and the next being Jeongguk’s, so there was no way Jeongguk could’ve been there - Chunhwa shouted “daddy!” and ran over, throwing herself at Jeongguk, who picked her up and swung her into the air.

“Hi, my little princess,” Jeongguk cooed, kissing her chubby cheeks. “Are you ready to go?”

Chunhwa nodded and let herself be put back on the floor. “Papa helped me pack!”

“Go get your bag, sweetheart,” Jimin told her, watching her rush off to her room with a pang. It was always difficult to watch her leave, even though he knew she’d be home again soon enough. Well, he was trying not to call it that anymore ever since his friend Taehyung had pointed out it made her life with Jeongguk feel inferior. She had two homes, that was all, and people had judged them for it, stating a child needed stability, but she had love and she seemed alright with it. Jimin had almost asked her once if she would prefer them to live together, but that would be unfair for many reasons.

“I’ll look after her,” Jeongguk promised, pulling Jimin from his thoughts. His eyes were earnest, his shoulders pulled back. Jimin smiled at him. No matter what might happen between them, one thing he could trust was that Jeongguk was a great dad and he’d always take care of their little girl.

“I know. Do you have any special plans for the two of you?”

Jeongguk shrugged and shoved his hands in his pockets. “I was thinking of taking her to Lotte World on Saturday, maybe a dog cafe on Sunday before I drop her off here. She’s been asking about getting a puppy, but I don’t know if I’d have enough time for one. Chunhwa goes to school, but what would I do with a dog during the day?”

“She’s asked me for one too,” Jimin revealed. He’d love a dog, but like Jeongguk felt he was far too busy. Not to mention that he was worried the dog would get confused if the little human that loved it so kept disappearing every other week. “I blame Taehyung, he brings over Yeontan every time he visits and it gives her ideas.”

Jeongguk cocked an eyebrow. “Because Jin hyung and Yoongi hyung wouldn’t whisper that idea in her ear?”

That was a good point, those two could be a terrible influence. “Still,” Jimin sighed, “sometimes I do wish I had a dog.” He loved animals and if he could, he’d have a pet in a heartbeat. He had considered getting a hamster, or rats, but they generally didn’t live very long and he didn’t want to face that heartbreak too soon.

“You could join us.”

Jimin’s head shot over to Jeongguk. He frowned. “But that’s your quality time with Chunhwa.” They had a rather strict divide, except for birthdays, holidays, certain trips or outings - their mutual friends often asked for them all, for example - and things like parent-teacher meetings or performances. Mostly, their week with Chunhwa was _their_ week with Chunhwa. They saw each other on Sundays, but that was it. They did consider each other friends and Jimin would always have a special place in his heart for Jeongguk, but they didn’t want to confuse Chunhwa by being too close.

(Taehyung had suggested it might be more confusing for them than for Chunhwa, but that was a box Jimin was unwilling to open.)

“I don’t mind if you don’t,” Jeongguk said, so casually that it was clear he didn’t find this a big deal. Not like Jimin, who had gotten used to their routine and felt thrown off kilter by the mere invitation. “Besides, Chunhwa told me she’d like to spend more time with both her dads.”

That did sound like her, and after the bullying - not only were her parents gay, but they were also seperated - it would be a good idea to give her a sense of normalcy. “I’ll think about it,” Jimin promised. He’d stress over it for the next few days, even though he already knew what his answer would be.

Jeongguk smiled at him. “That’s all I ask.” He glanced down the hallway and frowned. “What do you think is taking her so long? Her bag was packed, right?”

Jimin ran his hand through his hair, wondering the same. “Not sure, she should be back by now… I’ll go check on her.”

He walked towards her room and rapped his knuckles on the open door. “Sweetheart, is everything okay?” He paused when he spotted her halfway under her bed. “What are you doing?”

“Looking for Cooky,” came her muffled voice.

Jimin entered the room and tilted his head. Cooky was the plushie she always kept at Jimin’s, as it was a gift from Jeongguk and offered some comfort whenever she missed him. She had a similar plushie at Jeongguk’s, a present from Jimin, though that one was called Chimmy, “You don’t need Cooky, you’ll be with daddy,” he pointed out gently. “Or do you want to take him along too?” It made sense, she was likely still at least somewhat upset. and perhaps she wanted to take the toy that had helped her the past few days.

Chunhwa sighed, sounding exasperated, and moments later she re-emerged from under the bed, giving Jimin a look that was far too mature for her age. “Don’t be silly, papa,” she scolded. “He’s for you, so you won’t be lonely.”

Jimin blinked at her, unsure what to say to that. Either she knew more than she let on or she was simply assuming, but he was touched either way. Jimin crouched down beside her to give her a hug, which she allowed easily, wrapping her own small arms around Jimin’s neck. “Thank you, sweetheart, that’s very sweet of you.”

She shrugged at that and when he pulled back, she didn't look him in the eye. She could get embarrassed when people acknowledged her positively, something Jimin hoped she'd grow out of as he wanted her to be proud of herself.

"Tell you what," Jimin said, holding her hands, "daddy's waiting for you, so why don't you go with him now and I'll continue to look for Cooky when you've left. Okay?"

She shook her head and pointed at her wardrobe. "Don't need to, he's up there. He wanted to fly and now he can't get down."

"He-" Jimin sighed through his nose. She did like to make her toys fly, which really consisted of throwing them across the room, or on top of things, or behind things. “Okay, so why were you looking under the bed?”

“Because I’m too small to get it from there.”

That was perfect Chunhwa logic. At least she hadn’t tried to climb up the wardrobe, which is exactly the kind of thing Jeongguk would have done as a child.

“I’ll get it instead,” Jimin assured her, stretching to reach the top of the wardrobe and silently swearing when he could only grasp the very edge of the pink bunny plushie, because of course it had fallen all the way to the back.

“Maybe daddy can help,” Chunhwa said when Jimin stood back on his heels and looked around for a chair.

“No, no, papa can do it,” he replied, but she was already shouting ‘daddy!’ which was quickly followed by Jeongguk’s footsteps hurrying towards them.

“Is everything okay?” he asked, his eyes wide and worried.

“Papa can’t get Cooky,” Chunhwa pouted.

“I can, I just need a chair,” Jimin explained patiently. He smiled over at Jeongguk apologetically, ignoring the mirth in his eyes; Jeongguk had often commented on how tiny Jimin was when they were still together and teased him about it, and he must be enjoying this. “She wants Cooky to keep me company.”

“Ah.” Jeongguk nodded solemnly and stepped into the room. “I understand, I always cuddle Chimmy when I’m alone.”

Jimin scoffed. “No, you don’t.”

“Yes, I do,” Jeongguk insisted. “He comforts me and makes sure I don’t feel lonely.”

“Daddy loves Chimmy,” Chunhwa piped up, clinging to Jimin’s leg and looking up at him. “Does papa not love Cooky?”

She pulled her best puppy eyes and even managed to make her bottom lip tremble. As much as Jimin knew it was all an act, it tugged on his heartstrings, especially after the rough week she’d had. He sighed and stroked her hair, which he had put in two little pigtails earlier, at her request. As much as she could be shy in school, she was growing more demanding at home and learning more about her likes and dislikes.

"Of course I love him. And," he nodded over at Jeongguk, "if daddy gets him down, I promise to hug Cooky lots this week. Okay?"

Chunhwa grinned up at him happily, her missing front tooth on display. “Okay!”

Jeongguk managed to grab Cooky easily and handed the plushie over to Jimin, who held it close to show Chunhwa he’d take good care of it.

“I’ll look after him well,” he promised as he gently ushered Chunhwa out the room, Jeongguk following behind with her things.

“Noooo, he looks after _you_ ,” she said, shaking her head at him and exchanging a look with Jeongguk like he just didn’t understand. Jeongguk tried to hide his smile by lowering his head and putting his shoes back on while Chunhwa worked on her own.

“Right.” Jimin glanced at the plushie. “Right.” He shook himself and placed it aside for now, then knelt down and held open his arms. “Do I get a hug before you go, sweetheart?”

Chunhwa shuffled over and hugged him as tightly as she could, Jimin holding her closely. This was the part he liked the least, the goodbyes. His home always felt empty after she had gone, a reminder that he was doing this alone, and he ensured he was extra busy during her weeks at Jeongguk’s. He pressed a kiss to her hair and squeezed her once more before reluctantly letting go. He reminded himself that Jeongguk went through the same thing every week and a glance up at him showed sympathy and understanding.

“Have fun with your dad, alright? And I’ll see you in a week.”

Chunhwa nodded and kissed Jimin on the cheek. “I’ll miss you, papa!”

“I’ll miss you too, sweetheart.” He helped her into her coat and opened the door for them. “Ring me if you need me.”

She nodded, swinging her pigtails, and took Jeongguk’s hand.

“I’ll text you when we’re home and during the week,” Jeongguk promised. It was what they always did, but Jimin was glad for the reassurance. “Remember to let Cooky take care of you.” He winked and then they were off, Jimin watching them go and waving when Chunhwa looked back at him over her shoulder.

Once they had disappeared from view, he stepped back inside and locked the door, sagging against it. His lips pulled downwards, the silence of the flat deafening. His gaze fell on Cooky, the pink bunny looking soft and innocent and reminding him far too much of Jeongguk. He had promised Chunhwa, though. Rolling his eyes at himself, he picked it up as he walked back into the living room, curling up with it as he turned on the TV.

After he had gotten used to taking care of Chunhwa on his own, Jimin had tried to date. He made sure to only plan dates when she was staying at Jeongguk’s, but nothing had ever worked out. Most men lost interest as soon as he mentioned he had a child, or they got impatient about not moving fast enough, not understanding that he needed to consider his daughter.

One particular one had been fine with him being a father and had been accepting of the pace of their relationship, to the point where Jimin had eventually introduced him to Chunhwa - and, by extension, to Jeongguk. Although he had seemed fond enough of Chunhwa, he couldn’t stand Jeongguk and was irrationally jealous of him; he seemed intent on replacing Jeongguk by one-upping him regarding presents and surprises.

Jeongguk had found it amusing at first and Jimin had seen it as harmless. It stopped being fun quite quickly, though, because he started speaking badly of Jeongguk for no reason, ignoring Jimin’s scolding. Jimin was slow to dump him, mostly because he was unsure how to explain his sudden disappearance to Chunhwa, but when he had started to insist Jimin get sole custody and had tried to drag her into it too, trying to make her like him better (as though anyone could ever replace her dad), he had finally had enough.

Since then it hadn’t seemed worth the hassle. There were undoubtedly men out there who would be right for him and who would accept his relationship with Jeongguk and the fact that Chunhwa came first, but he could wait. Come to think of it, he didn’t think Jeongguk had dated since their break-up. Either that, or he had managed to keep it a secret. Then again, Jeongguk was a hopeless romantic, but he didn’t go looking for relationships; he seemed to believe it was all up to faith.

Jimin missed being with him sometimes. Before things went bad, as far as they had actually been _bad_ , they had been amazing. Jeongguk was sweet and managed to make him feel special and beautiful, and even now he was willing to drop everything if Jimin needed him. He was such a brilliant dad too and clearly loved their daughter with all his heart, calling her a princess and treating her as such.

Sighing, he picked up Cooky from beside him, having carried the damn thing around at home since Sunday, feeling silly and embarrassed when he put it in bed with him like a baby, but wanting to keep his promise to Chunhwa. And perhaps it did help a bit, having it around.

He stared into the dark eyes of the plushie and wondered if Jeongguk ever pretended Chimmy was speaking to him in his voice, because he had been tempted to do so with Cooky. Get it to cheer him on with actual Jeongguk quotes. Would that go too far?

“I wish I knew what you were thinking,” he mumbled to Cooky. He pulled a face and quickly put the plushie back down. “Nope, too weird.” That didn’t mean he didn’t want to know, though. Because Jeongguk and he had never discussed their relationship after sorting out custody. They couldn’t avoid bringing up the past, but they always kept it at the surface and Jimin couldn’t tell if Jeongguk had any regrets, or any wishes or desires.

And his invitation to the dog cafe… It was Wednesday now and Jimin had received a text asking him if he had decided yet. He hadn’t, and he had come up with some excuse about possibly having plans with Taehyung - an unnecessary lie Jeongguk had undoubtedly seen through immediately, yet he had accepted it without question. He had promised he’d check and get back to him, to which Jeongguk had replied with a thumbs up followed by a picture of Jeongguk and Chunhwa, both with crowns on their heads, Jeongguk wearing some ridiculous ensemble of gold and random patterns he nevertheless pulled off well and Chunhwa wearing a purple dress with puffy sleeves and lace.

After much deliberation, he had made it his home screen. Then he had deleted it. Then he'd put it back. Then he had zoomed in on Chunhwa, but her smiling face didn't look right without Jeongguk’s toothy grin somehow. In the end he had used the full picture, telling himself it would be rude not to and suppressing the part of him that told him this was his family.

Jimin groaned and slumped down on the settee. He hadn’t thought of Jeongguk romantically in a long time, yet now he couldn’t help but imagine it. It wasn’t merely the idea of being more involved together as Chunhwa’s parents; he could get behind that, because he could tell how happy it made Chunhwa whenever they did things together. It was the worry of her getting used to something that couldn’t last that made them do so only on occasion, but it couldn’t hurt to increase the frequency.

No, the problem wasn’t even that he was picturing them as a family. It was that he had started to picture himself and Jeongguk as a couple. They weren’t meant for each other, they’d hurt each other again if they tried and they’d hurt Chunhwa in the process, something they had mostly avoided last time they split up. They had changed, grown, but was it enough? And did Jeongguk even want this? Because Jimin could be worrying about this while Jeongguk hadn’t meant anything by it.

He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. “I’m overthinking this.” He glanced down at Cooky. “I wonder what you’d tell me.” Probably the obvious answer: talk to Jeongguk about this. But what if he only made him uncomfortable? It could be awkward enough to confess, but to confess to an ex? And confess what? He didn’t even know for sure what he felt, if anything.

His phone pinged. Jimin unlocked it and found another message from Jeongguk: a picture of Chunhwa asleep on Jeongguk’s chest. He cooed at the screen and hated that he could easily see himself with them, cuddled up to Jeongguk and keeping their daughter safe and warm. What did this _mean_? Had he suddenly fallen for Jeongguk again because of a simple invitation? Or had his feelings never truly gone in the first place and had this rekindled them?

He couldn’t tell anymore and he knew he needed to figure it out. It could even be nothing at all, simply some random thoughts because he was lonely and the whole plushie situation had made him realise even Chunhwa could tell that much. And in that case it might be convenience: Jeongguk was familiar and everything he worried about with potential boyfriends didn’t apply to him. And that would be unfair, to all of them.

He still had a few days to think, to perhaps talk to one of his friends and see if they could offer some perspective, and then it would be Sunday. No matter what, seeing them then couldn’t possibly be bad, right? It might even help.

He texted back a thank you for the picture and told Jeongguk he hoped they’d both sleep well, even though it was still fairly early. Then he asked for the address of the dog cafe and what time to meet them, to which he received several happy emojis followed by an ‘I’ll tell you tomorrow’ and then a ‘sweet dreams for later’ with a heart at the end that may or may not have been an accident as there were a few sleep-related emojis before that.

Jimin turned on the TV and stared at it unseeingly, pretending not to care.

*******

It was a little past their agreed meeting time when Jimin got to the cafe. His punctuality had improved ever since Chunhwa had appeared in his life, but his old self still slipped through at times - like now, when he was anxious and determined to fake confidence by looking his best. Which had taken him more time than expected: it had been a while since he had truly dressed up and since this wasn't a date, he had been unsure what would be deemed too much and what wouldn't be enough.

Not that he didn't put any effort into his looks on any other day, but the context was different today.

You see, he had discussed his dilemma extensively. On Friday night Taehyung had dropped by after work and Hoseok had joined them the day after, called in by Taehyung, though that was more for his benefit than for Jimin’s. He had laid out the issue to them and they had said precisely what Jimin had expected and what he already knew: he needed to talk to Jeongguk.

They had also reminded him that both of them loved Chunhwa and would keep her best interests at heart, whether they ended up together or not, whether things would work out or not, because they had been through worse. And there was no guarantee they wouldn’t last; plenty of people did.

They couldn’t tell him what Jeongguk felt, partly because that was something they needed to discuss among themselves and partly because he had never said, but that was alright. Because Jimin thought he finally knew what _he_ felt. Which was what he had always felt, though for a while it had been overshadowed by whatever had torn them apart. Sometimes, he supposed, you needed to work on yourself first.

And so he was determined to win Jeongguk back. He was dressed in his tightest jeans that were still family-friendly with a simple black t-shirt on top and a jacket over that, and he knew he looked good. Not like he had been trying _too_ hard, but enough that hopefully even Jeongguk would notice. Though not enough that Chunhwa would. He was fine with her realising something was different, but she remained the priority and the focus should mainly be on her.

He pushed open the door and looked around. Apparently the place had been recommended by Namjoon, who had done his research: all dogs here were treated well, walked several times a day by the volunteers, and as soon as they appeared uncomfortable or overwhelmed, they were taken to a quieter room, purely for rest. Any customer who didn't stick to the rules was asked - or ordered - to leave. It was a place for dogs without a home and there were different-coloured collars to indicate if they welcomed pettings or not, or only in moderation.

It didn’t take long for Jimin to spot Jeongguk and Chunhwa: they were sat on the floor, Jeongguk laughing as a golden retriever crawled all over him, Chunhwa playing with a small poodle that had cuddled up to her. His heart warmed at the sight and, after explaining why he was there to the person at the front, he left his shoes in one of the cubbies at the entrance and wandered inside.

He raised his hand to wave when Chunhwa saw him, unable to stop himself from grinning when she came to meet him halfway, flinging herself at him for a cuddle. God, he had missed her, his little sunshine, the biggest pride of his life. He closed his eyes and hugged her tightly, hoping she understood how important she was to him.

“I’ve missed you, sweetheart,” he sighed, kissing her hair.

“Missed you too, papa.” Chunhwa broke the hug and looked up at him with her big eyes, holding his hand. Did Cooky help?”

Jimin nodded and led her over to Jeongguk, who was now sitting up and smiling at them, his eyes lingering on Jimin’s legs. “Cooky helped a lot, thank you for telling me to keep him close.”

She smiled up at him happily. “I knew it! He makes me feel better too,” She let go of his hand and flopped down next to Jeongguk, who scooted over to make room for Jimin. “Daddy and I went for ice cream first!”

Jimin raised his eyebrows as he made himself comfortable on the floor. “Ice cream before dinner?”

Jeongguk shrugged, sheepish. “She wanted some. So did I. What harm can it do?”

Jimin contemplated pointing out that too much sugar wasn’t good, but then again, it _was_ the weekend, and it wasn’t as though he never spoiled her either. “Invite me next time,” he said instead.

“If you want, sure.” Jeongguk petted the retriever that refused to leave him alone. Jimin could relate. “You look good, by the way.”

Trying not to preen - and failing - Jimin leaned back on his hands. "Thanks, so do you."

Jeongguk blinked at him, the question clear in his eyes. Ever since their break-up, Jimin had greatly toned down the flirting around him, not wanting to cause any confusion or cross any boundaries. Perhaps this wasn't the way to go. Hitting on him how he used didn’t work anymore; they were older now, they were _exes_ , and, most importantly, they had a child together. Jimin glanced over at where Chunhwa was happily playing with the poodle, then looked back at Jeongguk. Really looked at him.

This was the man he had loved with his entire being, the man he had decided to have a child with, the man who had gone from being quiet and shy around him to confident and unreserved. The man he had drifted away from and who had agreed that they were better off apart, who had had to watch as Jimin went through a few failed attempts at relationships - including one where someone was trying to cut him out.

And this wasn't fair to him. Or to Chunhwa, or to Jimin himself. Either Jeongguk was willing to try again or he wasn't, but they needed to talk; the time for games was over.

Biting his lip, Jimin placed his hand on Jeongguk’s knee and squeezed. "I'd like to talk to you later," he muttered. "It's nothing bad, but it's needed."

Jimin knew from the look on Jeongguk’s face that his reassurance helped little, but Jeongguk nonetheless nodded. Jimin smiled at him, grateful, and reached out for Chunhwa, who looked at him with her big, bright eyes. He knew the bully had mostly left her alone this week, thank god, and he knew what she had been up to through Jeongguk, but he always loved to hear it from her too.

"Did you and daddy have fun the last few days?"

Chunhwa nodded happily. She scooted closer to him, speaking animatedly about her adventures and placing her little hand in Jimin’s. Jimin listened with a smile, and seeing how happy she was between the two of them, he decided that no matter what, this was something he wanted to preserve.

"I think she's got everything." Jeongguk checked his flat one last time, nodding to himself when he determined that, yes, she did. Chunhwa, meanwhile, was watching TV from Jeongguk’s settee, one of her plushies in her arms and a thin blanket covering her legs. She hadn’t stopped yawning since they'd left the dog cafe, though she insisted she wasn't tired. Her clinginess gave her away as well: she had been cuddled up to at least one of them the entire time, and had only begrudgingly allowed Jimin to leave, as though she felt he was about to do something important.

"Good, good." Jimin stared at her packed bag and wondered if this could ever be a thing of the past. He’d accept either option, of course, but it was nice to imagine having a home with the three of them again.

They hadn't talked yet. Jimin had been trying to find the right moment, but he also didn't want to leave Chunhwa on her own and Jeongguk had so far avoided all Jimin’s attempts at speaking to him about anything other than their daughter or more mundane topics, like traffic on the way home. Jimin glanced over at Chunhwa, who seemed to be nodding off.

"Let's let her nap first," he suggested. It was fairly early, she usually got to Jimin’s right after tea time. "There's time."

Jeongguk nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, there is. I just wanted to make sure, so we wouldn't be rushing later." He gestured over at Chunhwa. "I'll get her to lie down. Maybe…" He swallowed. "Then we can talk?"

"That sounds great," Jimin assured him. He watched how Jeongguk picked up a now sleeping Chunhwa, who stirred in his arms, and carried her off to her room. He was starting to feel the nerves now. Had Chunhwa not fallen asleep, Jeongguk might have tried to get out of it.

Actually, if he were honest, Jimin might have tried that too. It was scary, putting yourself out there, and all he could do was remind himself that Jeongguk was essentially like the golden retriever that hadn't once left his side at the dog cafe: loyal, sweet, soft, and ever so gentle. He could be a brat, but he was kind and his heart big. He'd never purposely hurt anyone and if he did reject Jimin, he'd do it as carefully as possible. Which was only a small comfort, but a comfort nonetheless.

Jimin sorted out the settee before sitting down, folding his hands in his lap. Jeongguk’s TV was larger than his own and there were a few game consoles beneath it. He had bought a Switch once Chunhwa got more interested and let her play Animal Crossing and Pokémon sometimes. (He had offered to bring the Switch to Jimin’s for his weeks, but Jimin had so far declined; it seemed like too much hassle.) There were pictures up on the wall, candids of Chunhwa, Jimin and Chunhwa, their friends, as well as more artistic shots. Displayed most prominently was a photo Taehyung had taken of the three of them two Christmases ago. They had already been broken up, but they were laughing and little Chunhwa was chewing on her present. Jimin had often wondered about that one, although only now was he genuinely curious.

"She’s resting," Jeongguk said from behind him, startling him. "She had a good hold of my sleeve then."

Jimin chuckled and watched Jeongguk walk around the settee. He patted the space beside him and after a moment's hesitation, Jeongguk sat down.

"So."

"So."

God, this was awkward. Jimin sighed and brushed back his hair. "Right, there's no easy way to say this. I still don't know if I _want_ to say this." He took a deep breath and looked away from Jeongguk’s eyes, too earnest and attentive. "I've been thinking, recently… About us. You and me. And Chunhwa, but mostly you and me." He pulled up his legs and put his arms around his knees. "About how we were and how we are. How we could be."

Jeongguk remained silent. Oh god, that couldn't be a good sign. Jimin looked over at him and his eyebrows were furrowed, though he didn't appear upset.

"If you would want us to be," Jimin added, feeling smaller and smaller by the minute. "Because I miss you. And I care about you. And I know we had a really rough patch, which is why we split up, but we've changed since then. Though I'm not sure my feelings did." He scoffed. "I thought they had, hence the other guys and why I never brought it up, but I was wrong. Falling out of love with you was never an option."

Jeongguk shifted beside him. He was staring down at his knees like he'd never seen them before. "I don't know what to say," he admitted at last.

"That's fine, it's a lot to throw at you," Jimin hurried to say. "For the record, I do believe we needed that break to work on ourselves. And if you don't want to try this, try _us_ , again, I completely understand. I wanted you to know it's on the table for me, that's all."

"What about Chunhwa? What if we… What if it's worse?"

"What if it's better?"

Jeongguk hummed, as though he hadn’t considered that option. "I hated seeing you with other men," he admitted. "Especially Leeteuk. You two seemed serious until he got weirdly possessive."

Jimin wrinkled his nose at the mention of him. "I never realised, I'm sorry… You never looked upset," he pointed out.

"Because I wanted you to be happy. And if that wasn't with me…" He shrugged. "So be it."

Jimin bit his lip, barely daring to hope. "What about now?"

"Now…" Jeongguk’s eyes flickered over to him. "I'd love to make you happy, Jimin. But we'd have to take it slow."

"I know. I'm okay with that." If Jeongguk hadn't said so, Jimin would have. "All I'd like to know is if there's a chance for us and then we take it from there. Start with more Sundays together, build it up to include Saturdays, ask our friends to babysit once a month or something." He stopped and flushed, realising that he was getting ahead of himself.

Jeongguk smiled, flashing his teeth. "Yeah. I think that would be okay."

Jimin raised his eyebrows. "Does that mean…?"

Jeongguk bit his lip and nodded. "Let's try it."

Jimin grinned and threw himself at Jeongguk, burying his face in Jeongguk’s neck. "Sorry," he apologised, muffled. "I've missed this." Jeongguk gave the best hugs, always had done. Jimin couldn't explain why, but no one else had ever come close.

Jeongguk snorted and, after a few moments, put his arms around Jimin in return. "Maybe we can start with a sleepover?" he suggested.

"Erm…" Jimin pulled back and gave Jeongguk a blank look.

"No!" Jeongguk’s eyes widened with panic. "No, not like that. But you're already here and I have a big bed and spare clothes, and Chunhwa would probably like it if we all ate together tonight and- and maybe you sleeping over would be too fast."

"Maybe," Jimin agreed, watching Jeongguk's shoulders sag. "I don't want to throw off Chunhwa’s routine too much, so we'll see how it goes."

"We should ease her into this."

Today had already seen some change for her; they didn't want to overwhelm her. Or themselves: it would be easy to get caught up in the excitement.

"We can cook together, though," Jeongguk offered. "Or, well, _I_ can cook." He snickered when Jimin punched his arm.

"I can cook!" Jimin glared at him. Granted, he wasn't quite as good at it as Jeongguk was, but he could do some meals. He had to, he couldn't afford continuous takeaways for Chunhwa and he didn't want to rely on Seokjin and Yoongi to prepare meals, though they done so a few times.

"Okay then, master chef." Jeongguk got up and grabbed Jimin’s hands to help him up too. "Why don't you show me what you've got?"

Jimin huffed and led the way to the kitchen. "Is this what I'll have to put up with from now on?"

Jeongguk clung to him from the back, making him stumble. "Pretty much. I don't think you mind it, though." He squeezed Jimin’s waist and quickly nuzzled his ear before letting go, leaving Jimin to get his heart back under control.

He opened a cupboard and tossed some onions Jimin’s way.

"Right, let's do this!"

**Author's Note:**

> This was fun to write! I will probably continue this at some point, because there's so much more to be said about their relationship, where it will go, how they were, etc.
> 
> Find me on [Twitter](http://www.twitter.com/sea_thehorizon). 💜


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